Records: Murder suspect Robert Steuber has decades’ old molestation conviction

Robert Steuber, accused in the fatal shooting of Sandra Lebarron, was convicted of child molestation in the 1970s, legal documents show.

Sacramento authorities arrested Steuber, who was 36 at the time, in September 1971 on four sexually-related accusations. In May 1972 Steuber pleaded guilty to a count of lewd and lascivious acts and was sentenced to six months in jail, followed by four years' probation, according to records in the Nevada County District Attorney's Office.

Steuber served 90 days in prison. In October 1972 he had to register as a sex offender, the records indicate.

According to the documents, a judge set aside the conviction in February 1975. At that time Steuber no longer had to register as a sex offender.

Steuber's 1971 arrest stemmed from accusations that occurred in Sacramento County. He has no criminal history in Nevada County, excepting his July arrest on murder accusations, court records show.

Steuber's public defender couldn't be reached for comment.

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Now 82 and held without bond, Steuber awaits a Nov. 2 hearing in his murder case.

At that hearing it's expected attorneys will review a doctor's report on Steuber. The report stems from a judge's September determination that Steuber is incompetent and needed an evaluation. That evaluation could detail when he might understand the accusations against him.

Authorities claim that Steuber shot Lebarron in July at their Penn Valley home during an argument, Steuber, in a wheelchair, left the argument to get a gun. He then returned to Lebarron and fatally shot her.